At the time I was treated the Albany clinic was undergoing some upheaval while transitioning to becoming part of Boston IVF...I felt the coordination of care and tailoring of treatment was poor, but this may have changed. Monitoring visits started at 7am so I was often able to get in without missing any time at work. The financial side of things was frustrating. I

+ Read more

Age

30 - 31

Treated

2014 - 2015

Success with this Doc

No

Race

European

Income

$100K - $199K

Occupation

Engineer

Order & Number of Docs Seen

1st of 2 Docs

Treatment

7 IUI, 1 IVF, Donor Sperm

Diagnosis

Unexplained

3

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

At the time I was treated the Albany clinic was undergoing some upheaval while transitioning to becoming part of Boston IVF. I felt the coordination of care and tailoring of treatment was poor, but this may have changed.
Monitoring visits started at 7am so I was often able to get in without missing any time at work.
The financial side of things was frustrating. I did not have any insurance coverage except for diagnostic testing and often received conflicting information from different staff members on how much to pay and whether I needed to pay upfront or wait for a claim to be processed by insurance.
They have a clean-looking practice with reasonably up to date equipment such as the ultrasound machines. It looks similar to any other doctor's office.

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

I saw the actual doctor very little. I ostensibly had a nurse coordinator but she was often out during my treatment cycles and I was bounced around to other nurses to get answers. By the end of the 7 IUI cycles I pursued I did not feel like treatment had been very tailored for me- after several failures little was done to adjust my protocol. Staff were reluctant to switch me from Femara to Clomid, told me injectables were not a good option since monitoring showed I was responding already. They refused changes such as trying a different trigger timing or two IUI in one cycle, telling me that it was not necessary, while not offering a satisfying explanation for my continued failed cycles (other than "chances are worse with frozen donor sperm" which they did not emphasize up front). I felt like the like the doctor and nurses continued to inflate my chances. I didn't totally feel like a number as on paper treatment was appropriate, but felt the staff could have had better bedside manner and could have helped me avoid more failed treatment by being more realistic about my chance for IUI vs IVF.

Describe your experience with your nurse.

I was assigned a coordinator but she was out of the office during at least part of the cycle for the majority of my cycles so I struggled to get information from other staff.
The nursing staff were polite and professional, but I felt coordination could have been improved. Most of the time the nurses I saw did not have any time to familiarize themselves with my record ahead of time, so while they always attempted to answer questions they were often not able to really tailor answers.
Bloodwork and ultrasound were done by separate staff members so I sometimes had to wait additional time for one or the other.
The practice had an online patient portal but did not really use it. I was generally able to reach nurses by phone within a few hours but occasionally had to bug them for results.

What specific things went wrong at this clinic?

Lost paperwork

Failed to call with results

Failed to send your chart to another clinic

Provided conflicting information

How was your experience with Sonia Elguero?

I only met with Dr. Elguero a few times (initially met with a different doctor who was temporarily handling the practice). She was nice but not extraordinary. She was not as familiar with my history at our visits as I would have liked and she seemed to have a standard educational "spiel" that she gave me when we got to the point of her explaining and recommending moving on to IVF. During my IUI cycles I did not really communicate with her and the nursing staff seemed to run the show, so I feel that I can't evaluate Dr. Elguero very well as she was so uninvolved in my treatment.

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Sonia Elguero?

Ask lots of questions and clarify your next steps so you are not left waiting.

Describe the protocols Sonia Elguero used in your cycles and their degree of success.

About $25k total - $6k for donor sperm, and then roughly $5k for testing and $14k for treatment with Albany IVF. Each IUI cycle was about $2000 total for multiple monitoring visits, sperm preparation and IUI. I had insurance coverage only for certain diagnostic testing and had a high-deductible plan so nearly all costs were out of pocket.

3

Doctor

Sonia Elguero

Communication

Trustworthiness

Compassion

Explained risks

Adaptability

Frequency seen during appointments

3

Clinic

Boston IVF - Albany Center

Loudonville

Nursing

Operations

Scheduling

Billing

Clinic Atmosphere

Educational Resources

– Read less

5

Age

29

Treated

2014

Success with this Doc

Yes

Treatment

5 IVF

Diagnosis

Endometriosis, PCOS, Tubal Blockage

5

communication [Boston IVF - Albany] needs to be better, if you know your patient has access to lab results through your office and you don’t call until late in the afternoon, you should expect them to look at the patient portal....Our lab work was put into the patient portal wrong, we received a very late phone call with our pregnancy results and for almost 3 hours we thought that we were pregnant when we were not

+ Read more

Age

29

Treated

2014

Success with this Doc

Yes

Race

Other

Income

$50K - $99K

Occupation

—

Order & Number of Docs Seen

1st of 2 Docs

Treatment

5 IVF

Diagnosis

Endometriosis, PCOS, Tubal Blockage

5

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

communication needs to be better, if you know your patient has access to lab results through your office and you don’t call until late in the afternoon, you should expect them to look at the patient portal. The mistake should have been told when the phone call was made. When I told Dr. Bauer about the mistake he had excuse for the nurse instead of apologizing right away for the mistake

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

I was out of state he was very nice and professional

Describe your experience with your nurse.

Our clinic was in the middle of a merge when we did our fresh egg donor cycle. Amy Alix/Jenna Horton was my nurse and she made me feel like I was her friend.
When we came to do our frozen embryo transfer Michelle was my nurse, she made me feel like just another patient. When it came to our pregnancy test our labs were put in the system wrong so I’m the patient portal it said that I was pregnant but it was actually my progesterone levels. She didn’t call until late in the afternoon and said that we weren’t pregnant and it wasn’t until I called back that we were told that our labs were put in wrong. For almost 3 hours we were under the impression that we were pregnant but we really weren’t.

What specific things went wrong at this clinic?

Failed to send your chart to another clinic

Failed to convey critical information

How was your experience with Steven Bayer?

I only did a phone consultation with him because I was out of state, I never met him in person. But in the phone he was very positive, let me ask questions and answered them fully. I wish I had met him in person but it didn’t happen

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Steven Bayer?

Make sure you are heard

Describe the protocols Steven Bayer used in your cycles and their degree of success.

We used an egg donor at this facility (it didn’t give me that option for this review)

Describe the costs associated with your care under Steven Bayer.

We only paid $12,000 for our egg donor cycle and we had one from frozen embryo transfer

5

Doctor

Steven Bayer

Communication

Trustworthiness

Compassion

Explained risks

Adaptability

Frequency seen during appointments

5

Clinic

Boston IVF - Albany Center

Loudonville

Nursing

Operations

Scheduling

Billing

Clinic Atmosphere

Educational Resources

– Read less

9

Age

—

Treated

—

Success with this Doc

No

Treatment

1 IUI, 2 IVF

Diagnosis

Anovulation, Endometriosis, PCOS, Tubal Blockage

9

The clinic [Boston IVF] is very organized. Everything is very clean. The waiting room is comfortable. All the staff are kind and thorough in explaining things. They're helpful and supportive...All the nursing staff at the clinic were incredibly kind and supportive. Blood draws were always quick and relatively painless...Everyone starts their cycle at the same time each month. I couldn't start my second IVF cycle earlier because I was told "this month's cycle is starting in 2 days and you wouldn't get your meds in time." In the long run, waiting another month wasn't a big deal but it was frustrating that I had to fit into the herd's timeline.

+ Read more

Age

—

Treated

—

Success with this Doc

No

Race

European

Income

$50K - $99K

Occupation

Teacher

Order & Number of Docs Seen

1 Doc Seen

Treatment

1 IUI, 2 IVF

Diagnosis

Anovulation, Endometriosis, PCOS, Tubal Blockage

9

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

The clinic is very organized. Everything is very clean. The waiting room is comfortable. All the staff are kind and thorough in explaining things. They're helpful and supportive. I was actually sad to be released from the office and sent to my new OBGYN.

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

Everyone starts their cycle at the same time each month. I couldn't start my second IVF cycle earlier because I was told "this month's cycle is starting in 2 days and you wouldn't get your meds in time." In the long run, waiting another month wasn't a big deal but it was frustrating that I had to fit into the herd's timeline.

Describe your experience with your nurse.

All the nursing staff at the clinic were incredibly kind and supportive. Blood draws were always quick and relatively painless. The ultrasound techs were all very friendly and thorough in their explanations. Everyone in the office was always friendly. Some of the staff have also gone through fertility treatments themselves, which added an extra layer of comfort when they discussed the process with me.

How was your experience with Sonia Elguero?

Dr Elguero seems almost nervous or awkward when she talks to you, which made me feel less confident in her knowledge/abilities when I first met her. After more appointments with her, I was less worried about it. It's just her personality. She's pretty upfront with her explanations of things, and has no issue explaining things in simpler terms to ensure you understand. One thing that *really* bothered my husband was that as soon as she was reminded we were paying out of pocket instead of with insurance, she adjusted the protocol and plans for possible future protocols. It seemed like she would have experimented more loosely if we weren't so concerned about the cost, which makes us wonder if the successful cycle would have been several cycles later instead.

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Sonia Elguero?

Make sure you are prepared with all of your questions ahead of time and make sure she takes the time to answer them.

Describe the protocols Sonia Elguero used in your cycles and their degree of success.

For our IUI cycle, we used meds typically used for IVF to see how my body woild respond. We were under the impression the IUI would not be successful because of my endometriosis and blocked tubes. Menopur and Follistim were used, along with Ganirelix.
For the first IVF cycle, we used Menopur, Follistim, and Ganirelix again. We used a higher dose of Follistim and lower dose of Menopur. It was a very unsuccessful cycle. There were 12 follicles, but only 2 eggs were retrieved. Most follicles were such low quality or not fully matured, and they broke apart when she tried to retrieve eggs. Only one egg was good quality, it was transferred on day 3, and ended in a chemical pregnancy.
The second IVF cycle, Dr Elguero decided to "flipflop" the meds. We used a higher dose of Menopur and a lower dose of Follistim. The meds were increased at a slower rate so that follicles would have a better opportunity to mature and develop. 10 eggs were retrieved, 8 fertilized. 6 developed into embryos, 1 was transferred and the other 5 are currently frozen. I'm 18 weeks pregnant from that cycle and things seem to be going smoothly.

Describe the costs associated with your care under Sonia Elguero.

For IUI, meds and procedure were covered by insurance and we only had to pay our $10 copay.
For IVF, nothing was covered by insurance. Meds cost $3000, procedure cost $6500, and freezing embryos that weren't transferred cost $1000

7

Doctor

Sonia Elguero

Communication

Trustworthiness

Compassion

Explained risks

Adaptability

Frequency seen during appointments

9

Clinic

Boston IVF - Albany Center

Loudonville

Nursing

Operations

Scheduling

Billing

Clinic Atmosphere

Educational Resources

– Read less

8

Age

30

Treated

2016

Success with this Doc

Yes

Treatment

15 IVF, 2 Egg Freezing, 1 Embryo Freezing

Diagnosis

Male Factor

8

[The nurse at Boston IVF is] Very efficient and effective great communication. She knows what she is doing and I never questioned that...The cycles are controlled unlike other clinics so there is a waiting period you can't just get started right away the stim and transfers...$20 copayment, 8k for gententic testing and $1400 for medications.

+ Read more

Age

30

Treated

2016

Success with this Doc

Yes

Race

Other

Income

$100K - $199K

Occupation

Nurse or HC Services

Order & Number of Docs Seen

1st of 2 Docs

Treatment

15 IVF, 2 Egg Freezing, 1 Embryo Freezing

Diagnosis

Male Factor

8

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

The cycles are controlled unlike other clinics so there is a waiting period you can't just get started right away the stim and transfers.

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

She was warm, kind and considerate. While meeting with her everything thing was throughly explained.

Describe your experience with your nurse.

Very efficient and effective great communication. She knows what she is doing and I never questioned that.

How was your experience with Sonia Elguero?

She was always honest, kind, and considerate, she always takes the best evidenced based practice and applied it to my case. I never had to question or worry about if I was doing the best protocol because I trust her so much.

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Sonia Elguero?

She's very smart but it's hard to get in contact with her you have to go through your nurse.

Describe the protocols Sonia Elguero used in your cycles and their degree of success.

My first cycle was 250 gonalf 75 menopur and .25 cetrotide. I triggered with 80units of lupron. I was disappointed with our results 15 eggs retrieved 8 mature 6 fertilized 2 made it blastocyst and to pgs testing 1 normal. We wanted to do another round to get a few more gentically good.embryos for a the future before transfer so Dr. Sonia was a little more aggressive.. 300 gonal f 75 menopur .25 cetrotide I triggered with the 80u of lupron and 5000u of hcg. 29 eggs retrieved 22 mature 19 fertilized 9 made it blastocyst and 5 were gentically good and frozen. Transfer is May 3!

Describe the costs associated with your care under Sonia Elguero.

$20 copayment, 8k for gententic testing and $1400 for medications.

10

Doctor

Sonia Elguero

Communication

Trustworthiness

Compassion

Explained risks

Adaptability

Frequency seen during appointments

8

Clinic

Boston IVF - Albany Center

Loudonville

Nursing

Operations

Scheduling

Billing

Clinic Atmosphere

Educational Resources

– Read less

10

Age

39

Treated

2016

Success with this Doc

Yes

Treatment

3 IUI, 5 IVF

Diagnosis

Unexplained

10

Although the Clinic [Boston IVF - Albany] was very “Clinic” like it was reassuring we came from a center that was very spa and meditation like but it didn’t work for us. It was nice feeling like they knew what they were doing...Her [Dr. Elguero] staff were great and when we went in to start our current procedure they remembered everything about us. They even remembered when we tried to do a uterine biopsy and I couldn’t do it bc of the pain

+ Read more

Age

39

Treated

2016

Success with this Doc

Yes

Race

Native American

Income

$50K - $99K

Occupation

Nurse or HC Services

Order & Number of Docs Seen

2nd of 2 Docs

Treatment

3 IUI, 5 IVF

Diagnosis

Unexplained

10

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

Although the Clinic was very “Clinic” like it was reassuring we came from a center that was very spa and meditation like but it didn’t work for us. It was nice feeling like they knew what they were doing

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

Quick call back time and quick reply to messages with questions from me, honest with myself and husband

Describe your experience with your nurse.

Her staff were great and when we went in to start our current procedure they remembered everything about us. They even remembered when we tried to do a uterine biopsy and I couldn’t do it bc of the pain

How was your experience with Sonia Elguero?

The biggest factor was that she was honest she told us when she would and wouldn’t take embryos based on their grades and we didn’t feel that we were dollar signs. I would say the only weakness is not doing our actual egg retrieval. But she choose to be aggressive with medications which worked bc I never had so many eggs ready

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Sonia Elguero?

Be prepared for honest answers.

Describe the protocols Sonia Elguero used in your cycles and their degree of success.

She put me on birth control then had me monitored via ultrasounds then we started the menopur then we did estrace pills orally and vaginally along with IM progesterone oil

Describe the costs associated with your care under Sonia Elguero.

This was the first time we didn’t have to self pay, our insurance covered everything so we never even asked just signed the paper work, it was amazing

10

Doctor

Sonia Elguero

Communication

Trustworthiness

Compassion

Explained risks

Adaptability

Frequency seen during appointments

10

Clinic

Boston IVF - Albany Center

Loudonville

Nursing

Operations

Scheduling

Billing

Clinic Atmosphere

Educational Resources

– Read less

10

Age

—

Treated

—

Success with this Doc

No

Treatment

2 IUI

Diagnosis

Male Factor

10

Need more clinics [Boston IVF] in the upstate region. Weakness was distance drive 2 hours to get there. New patient needs to know to order kicker shots on their own for the 2nd round so that it arrives on time, give yourself two days and call to find out that order was placed...20$ copays. 200 IUI costs, 200 lab test....[Nursing Staff] Upbeat...You are in good hands. Ask as many questions as you need to.

+ Read more

Age

—

Treated

—

Success with this Doc

No

Race

Other

Income

$50K - $99K

Occupation

—

Order & Number of Docs Seen

1 Doc Seen

Treatment

2 IUI

Diagnosis

Male Factor

10

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

Need more clinics in the upstate region. Weakness was distance drive 2 hours to get there. New patient needs to know to order kicker shots on their own for the 2nd round so that it arrives on time, give yourself two days and call to find out that order was placed. Freedom Pharmacy lagged.

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

She was very interested in making sure she followed up on my questions, she spoke to me in passing and took the time to ask questions to follow up as she made sure I understood the process.

Describe your experience with the nursing staff.

Upbeat.

How was your experience with Nina Resetkova ?

She asked alot of questions, required medical tests and followed up with phone calls. She took the time to listen and offer options. We are not well off so she worked with our insurance to do what was covered.

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Nina Resetkova ?

You are in good hands. Ask as many questions as you need to.

Describe the protocols Nina Resetkova used in your cycles and their degree of success.

We stuck to Clomid as it had less chance of multiple babies. IUI was performed twice and now looking into invitro as we knew the odds of husbands sperm not being effective were very very low. If we cannot get assistance with the cost then we will go with donor sperm. We had spent 10k on adoption that failed when court turned over children to the father. Husband is jail guard and Im an author and pet groomer. We make enough to pay the mortgage and bills but not alot more than that. Cost is what is keeping us from invitro but that would be the more ideal route. Huband wants to be the father.

Describe the costs associated with your care under Nina Resetkova .

20$ copays. 200 IUI costs, 200 lab test.

10

Doctor

Nina Resetkova

Communication

Trustworthiness

Compassion

Explained risks

Adaptability

Frequency seen during appointments

10

Clinic

Boston IVF - Albany Center

Loudonville

Nursing

Operations

Scheduling

Billing

Clinic Atmosphere

Educational Resources

– Read less

9

Age

33

Treated

2016

Success with this Doc

Yes

Treatment

9 Fertility Medications

Diagnosis

Anovulation, PCOS

9

The nurse I dealt with [at Boston IVF] had terrible follow-up on questions, very little compassion, and gave unsolicited advice...She failed to send in prescriptions in a timely manner and lost files I sent from a previous clinic...The US techs are amazing!...My insurance covered all but copays for visits and ultrasounds. I paid for medications out of pocket...My treatment needed to be tweaked following a chemical pregnancy and then non response.

+ Read more

Age

33

Treated

2016

Success with this Doc

Yes

Race

European

Income

$50K - $99K

Occupation

—

Order & Number of Docs Seen

3rd of 3 Docs

Treatment

9 Fertility Medications

Diagnosis

Anovulation, PCOS

9

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

My nurse was a problem, but she is gone now. The US techs are amazing!

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

Very personalized conversation, where my needs and concerns were addressed.

Describe your experience with the nursing staff.

The nurse I dealt with had terrible follow-up on questions, very little compassion, and gave unsolicited advice. I believe she is no longer with the practice.

What specific things went wrong at this clinic?

Failed to call in prescriptions to pharmacy

Lost paperwork

Provided conflicting information

Failed to convey critical information

How was your experience with Sonia Elguero?

My treatment needed to be tweaked following a chemical pregnancy and then non response. Dr. Elguero was thorough and gentle in her discussion regarding our path forward. It was a negotiation rather than a forced plan.

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Sonia Elguero?

Be prepared for a thorough history each time.

Describe the protocols Sonia Elguero used in your cycles and their degree of success.

My body has a lack luster response to letrozole, so a booster was needed and we discussed moving on to a highly monitored, low dose injectable cycle if I still did not respond. Dr. Elguero was very concerned about over response to injectables.

Describe the costs associated with your care under Sonia Elguero.

My insurance covered all but copays for visits and ultrasounds. I paid for medications out of pocket.

10

Doctor

Sonia Elguero

Communication

Trustworthiness

Compassion

Explained risks

Adaptability

Frequency seen during appointments

9

Clinic

Boston IVF - Albany Center

Loudonville

Nursing

Operations

Scheduling

Billing

Clinic Atmosphere

Educational Resources

– Read less

10

Age

—

Treated

—

Success with this Doc

Yes

Treatment

IVF

Diagnosis

Tubal Blockage

10

Everyone [Boston IVF- Albany] was so personable. Cared about Your every need. Knew you by name when you walked in the front door. They always asked how you were feeling and if you needed anything and how your drive was. And how everything was. Knew everything about you.... Amazing. Cared about you like you were family.... She [Dr. Elguero] made it all about us. All about what we were going through. All about what I needed to be able to have a baby.

+ Read more

Age

—

Treated

—

Success with this Doc

Yes

Race

Other

Income

$50K - $99K

Occupation

Operations

Order & Number of Docs Seen

1 Doc Seen

Treatment

IVF

Diagnosis

Tubal Blockage

10

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

Everyone was so personable. Cared about Your every need. Knew you by name when you walked in the front door. They always asked how you were feeling and if you needed anything and how your drive was. And how everything was. Knew everything about you.

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

She made it all about us. All about what we were going through. All about what I needed to be able to have a baby.

Describe your experience with the nursing staff.

Amazing. Cared about you like you were family.

How was your experience with Sonia Elguero?

She is amazing. Very personable. Very blunt. The only adjective was us trying to have a baby. She didn’t just want to jump into the IVF treatment if it wouldn’t take. She started from the beginning and treated me and what was wrong with me with what was wrong with me after battling ovarian cancer and wasn’t concerned with making money on jumping right into the IVF treatment. She treated my blockage first didn’t push anything on us. Listened to everything we had to say.

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Sonia Elguero?

She has the best ententions and gives the the best chances to reach your end goal.

Describe the protocols Sonia Elguero used in your cycles and their degree of success.

She wanted to remove the blocked Fallopian tube and make sure that it was clear to have a baby. That nothing could hurt our chances.

Describe the costs associated with your care under Sonia Elguero.

Reasonable.

10

Doctor

Sonia Elguero

Communication

Trustworthiness

Compassion

Explained risks

Adaptability

Frequency seen during appointments

10

Clinic

Boston IVF - Albany Center

Loudonville

Nursing

Operations

Scheduling

Billing

Clinic Atmosphere

Educational Resources

– Read less

7

Age

—

Treated

—

Success with this Doc

No

Treatment

1 IUI

Diagnosis

Unexplained

7

The clinics [Boston IVF-Albany Center] weakness is that It feels like a doctors office. Not a comfortable setting. I feel a strength is the nurses who give monitoring. They are very friendly and informative at the office. The usually took linger than expected to call you into your appointment.... I used clomid for 4 cycles, and an injection for one of those cycles with iui.... The monitoring was around $300. Iui with sperm was about $500

+ Read more

Age

—

Treated

—

Success with this Doc

No

Race

European

Income

$0 - $49K

Occupation

Sales Representative

Order & Number of Docs Seen

1 Doc Seen

Treatment

1 IUI

Diagnosis

Unexplained

7

Describe your experience with Boston IVF - Albany Center.

The clinics weakness is that It feels like a doctors office. Not a comfortable setting. I feel a strength is the nurses who give monitoring. They are very friendly and informative at the office. The usually took linger than expected to call you into your appointment.

During treatment, did you feel like you were treated like a number or a human?

I felt like i was a patient usi g their services. They were nice.

How was your experience with Sonia Elguero?

I dont recall seeing her alot. I felt she was professional but not as compassionate as i thought she would be. The techs were very nice. I do believe she initially did my iui, but unfortunately it failed.

What one piece of advice would you give a prospective patient of Sonia Elguero?

To be prepared to have little information and be treated like a patient.

Describe the protocols Sonia Elguero used in your cycles and their degree of success.

I used clomid for 4 cycles, and an injection for one of those cycles with iui.

Describe the costs associated with your care under Sonia Elguero.

They wer very high. The monitoring was around $300.
Iui with sperm was about $500